Zain held an ice pack to his nose, Gabe held one to his lip, and Kale limped as they nodded their agreement.
“If he can protect our sister from everyone but Ahmed, I think he’s good,” Zain said.
They each held out their hands and he shook them. Kale’s peace offering was an ice pack and a nod. Jameson turned to Mo but instead of answering, he turned for the door. “Get changed. Let’s see what my wife has to say.”
27
“Ari! Wake up!”
Ariana groaned as Mila banged on her door. Her head throbbed and half her makeup, mixed with drool, was on the pillowcase.
“Go away,” Ari groaned. Instead of going away, the bedroom door was thrown open as Mila and Sloane appeared beside her bed. “What?” Ari hissed when they opened the curtains.
“There’s a car we don’t recognize out front. Our husbands left at five something this morning. Dani just welcomed Father Ben into the house. Something is going on,” Sloane told her, but it hurt Ari to listen to them so she covered her head with a pillow until cold water was splashed on her.
“Aaah!” Ari shot up from the bed as a gargantuan hangover hammered through her skull. “What was that for?” Mila didn’t look like she felt bad from pouring a vase of water on her. Instead, she looked annoyed.
“Something is up. You’d better get downstairs,” Mila said with impatience.
“What’s up again?” Ari muttered as she stumbled from bed.
“Unknown car. Missing male Rahmi family members. Father Ben downstairs,” Sloane reminded her.
“I don’t understand. Too much Rose sisters’ tea. Do you think Mom is marrying me to Deming?” Ari asked as she stripped out of her wet pajamas and threw on a royal blue sweater and a pair of black jeans before shoving her feet into low-heeled booties.
“We don’t know. That’s why we’re here to get your ass out of bed!” Sloane said with annoyance.
“Save that tone. You’ll need it as a mother,” Mila advised. “That’s like the perfect mom-of-a-teenager voice right there.”
“I use it with my students. I can teach you when Zaria gets older.”
“Thanks,” Mila smiled and then frowned as she looked at Ariana. “Here, maybe you just sit there and let Sloane and I fix you up.”
Ariana didn’t complain when Mila attacked her hair or when Sloane used an embarrassingly large amount of concealer on her. Then they were dragging her down the stairs and into the breakfast room.
“There she is,” her mother said cheerfully. So cheerfully it made Ari’s brain hurt.
“Morning, Mom,” Ari grumbled as she leaned forward to kiss her mom’s cheek. “Hi, Father Ben. What brings you by this morning?”
Ariana headed to the sideboard where toast, eggs, bacon, and sausage were laid out with a selection of juices. Sloane rushed out of the kitchen and shoved a Bloody Mary into her hands as she picked up a piece of toast. “You’re my favorite sister,” Ari whispered to Sloane who just rolled her eyes. The Bloody Mary had so much hot sauce it was already burning Ari’s eyes and she hadn’t taken a sip yet.
“Your mother invited me over for breakfast to fill me in on the wedding. I hated missing it, but I was sick with the flu and didn’t want to get anyone else sick. Did you have a good time?” Father Ben asked. He was in his mid-thirties and didn’t look anything like a priest. In fact, he looked like a certain Special Forces soldier Ari knew. When he first arrived, it had been an awkward couple of weeks of being hit on by the entire female population. Then Father Ben learned to just wear his collar the entire time and the salivating women backed off.
“Other than the attempted abduction, it was very nice. Addison and Draven are so in love, and I think Father James really enjoyed coming out of retirement to help with the ceremony,” Ariana told him as she took a seat across from Father Ben.
It was when Mila and Sloane took their seats that Ariana paused with her drink halfway to her mouth. The table was set but the number of plates didn’t add up. Practically the entire table was set.
“Told you,” Mila mouthed as when Ariana looked up after counting the seats.
“Mom,” Ari said slowly, “are we having more guests for breakfast?”
“Hmm?” her mother said not so innocently. “Father Ben, did you say you had a prayer for Ari?”
“Oh, yes. It’s a prayer for protection,” Father Ben said, standing up and walking around the table. He stopped at Ariana’s side and placed one hand on her head and held her hand with the other. Father Ben bent his head and dropped his voice as he prayed for protection for Ariana. “Amen.”
“What the hell are you doing to my girlfriend?”
Ariana’s eyes blinked open as Father Ben’s grip on her hand tightened protectively. She poked her head around Father Ben as he began to turn around. “What are you doing here? What happened to your face? What happened to all your faces?”
Except Jameson didn’t reply. No one did. The room was completely quiet as Jameson and Father Ben looked each other over. Then they shot forward.
“Don’t hurt him. He’s a priest!” Ari yelled, but it wasn’t a punch that Jameson landed on Father Ben. It was a hug.
“Duke!” Father Ben cried as they clung to each other.
“Jacobs! I never thought I’d see you again.”
From Ariana’s point of view she looked up at Ben’s back to see Jameson’s head on the priest’s shoulder, tears leaking from his tightly closed eyes. Ariana’s gaze moved to the shocked look on the women’s faces, the confusion on the men’s faces, and there in the background was Dylan Davies who didn’t look confused or surprised at all.
“You two know each other?” Ariana asked when they stepped back from each other and wiped their wet eyes.
“Ben Jacobs saved my life,” Jameson said after taking a deep breath.
“When? How?” Ariana asked as everyone quickly filled the table, except Dylan who stayed in the shadows of the door.
Jameson sat beside her and gripped her hand tightly in his. He moved his chair so they were close enough that their shoulders and thighs were touching. Ari saw the moment when Father Ben realized they were together as a couple and he smiled.
“Dylan and Walker know my story, but not many others do,” Father Ben said slowly. “I was a priest with Special Forces, a chaplain.”
“He was the only one there with us in the war zone,” Jameson said, making it clear Father Ben had courage and the full respect of the soldiers.
“I wasn’t allowed to fight but went out with my team every time they were called to action. Jameson was part of my team. We spent long, hot days and never-ending nights side by side,” Father Ben told the table.
“Until one night we were called to help rescue hostages from a hospital that had been taken over by insurgents,” Jameson said, picking up the story. “My team was supposed to keep the exit clear so the elite team coming in had an escape route.”
“That was Dylan and his group,” Father Ben said with a nod of his head to where Dylan leaned against the door.
“It was?” Jameson asked with wide eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t know for sure. There’re lots of Special Forces groups out there, but after the incident at the palace, I pulled your records and made the connection,” Dylan said from the shadows.
Dani gasped and spun in her seat to look at Dylan. “That’s why you said I should get Father Ben’s impression of Jameson before I agreed.”
“Agreed to what?” Ari asked, still feeling a bit foggy.
“Nothing,” her parents, Jameson, and Dylan said all at once.
“What happened that night?” Zain asked, drawing attention back to Ben and Jameson.
Ariana felt Jameson’s body go rigid and his grip on her hand tightened. “We were ambushed after Dylan’s team moved in. We had a mission to keep the exit open and we were under attack. Men were falling all around me. Jacobs ran through gunfire like the Archangel Michael, administering first aid and last rites. Then I
took a hit. I was bleeding and in pain, but Jacobs was there. He got a dressing on me only to have his assistant, Jayden, shot while he was providing cover for us.”
“It’s against the rules for any religious member of the military to fight or fire a weapon. Jayden was my sword,” Father Ben explained.
Ariana wasn’t sure she’d breathed since the story began. She felt the pain of remembering trembling through Jameson’s body and tears welled in her own eyes as the two men looked only at each other as they spoke of the horrors of that night.
“Men were crying, dying, and screaming in pain around us,” Jameson continued. “I tried to provide cover as Father Jacobs worked on Jayden, but it was no use with my injury. I was in and out of consciousness. Then I heard a roar that shook the earth. When I forced my eyes open, Father Jacobs had placed himself in front of us injured and was firing on the enemy. The enemy charged and I thought it was the end as only Father Jacobs stood between them and us. He was fighting with everything he had. He fought with his gun, with his knife, with his fists, and he protected us until what I now know was Dylan’s team arrived. I passed out when I heard them arrive. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the hospital with Jayden in the bed beside me and with news that Ben Jacobs had been immediately discharged from the Army for breaking noncombative status in order to save our lives.”
Tears rolled down Ari’s cheeks, and when she looked around she saw all the women were crying silently. Ahmed stood and saluted Ben and Jameson. Ben and Jameson came to their feet immediately, returned his salute, and then saluted Dylan.
“I always believed I was brought to Keeneston for a higher purpose. But us here together,” Father Ben said, motioning toward Dylan and Jameson, “is a miracle.”
Ari squeezed Jameson’s hand and when he looked at her she knew without a doubt Jameson Duke was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
* * *
Jameson tried to rein in his emotions. He couldn’t believe Father Ben Jacobs was sitting across the table from him. Or that Dylan Davies’s Delta Force group had been the team that saved Jameson. His life seemed to come into sharp focus and that focus landing right here at this table. Ariana, Dylan, Ben, and the entire Ali Rahman family—who were somehow more of a family than his own—were right here in Keeneston. He’d left his job with nothing more than a feeling that he had to get to Ariana and now he knew he’d made the right call. Some may call it a gut feeling, second sight, or a calling. Whatever it was, it brought Jameson here and he’d found the love and the family he’d always wanted.
“We’ve come full circle,” Jacobs said as if reading Jameson’s mind.
“It appears moving to Keeneston was the right choice for us both,” Jameson said and almost laughed at Ari’s comical reaction.
“Wait, what?”
“I had a feeling you were in trouble and I had to get to you. My boss wouldn’t give me any more time off, so I quit.”
Ariana’s mouth was open in surprise, but before she could say anything, Mo cleared his throat. “Jameson, you believe Ariana is in danger?”
“Yes, sir.”
Veronica strutted into the room and looked around. “Glad we’ve gotten everything out in the open. Deming is wanting Ariana to escort him around town.”
“No!” Ariana and Jameson said at the same time.
Mo stood up and everyone went quiet. “Ariana, I need you to go with Father Ben. I believe you’re getting ready for the donation drive. Use your expertise in fundraising for that. You’ll be safe and out of Deming’s reach at the church. Plus, I trust Ben to keep you safe.”
Father Ben stood up looking once more like a soldier. “You have my word. I’ll keep her safe.”
Ariana put up a little argument, but Mo shut it down. Jameson wanted to go with her, but one look from Mo told him Mo had other plans. Jameson heard the front door close after Ben and Ariana left. Mo turned his full attention to Jameson, as did every other person in the room. “You have my permission to marry my daughter, but my dear wife has the final say.”
“He’s had my permission since New York,” Dani said as she smiled at him.
“Not that you need it, but Gabe and I also give our permission,” Zain said in a princely manner.
“Sloane and I also agree. We can’t wait to expand our group,” Mila said, giving him a wink.
“Group?” Mo asked.
“The in-laws. Those of us who married into the family have a special bond,” Dani said, smiling at the three of them.
“I offer my congratulations. I’ve never seen Ariana happier,” Veronica said with a smile.
“Now, about your job situation,” Mo turned to Jameson and Dani rolled her eyes. “How would you like to be employed by the royal family? I’d like to offer you the job of Ariana’s official protection agent. You’ll be acting for and on behalf of the crown. Veronica, get my brother on the screen. We need him to sign the official document making Ariana the UN ambassador, thus giving an extra layer of immunity to Jameson in his new position. Zain, is that okay with you?”
“It’s great with me. I’ve been wanting to step down from that role.”
“Good. This job title will give Jameson diplomatic immunity until he and Ariana marry, then he gets it as a prince of Rahmi,” Mo said.
Jameson’s head was spinning. “Wait, so I have your blessing to marry Ariana?”
“Yes,” they all answered.
“And I now have the official job as her head of security, thus giving me diplomatic immunity? What would I need diplomatic immunity for?”
Ahmed chuckled and slapped him on the shoulder. “I have so much to teach you. Welcome to the security team.”
Veronica looked up from her tablet. “The king awaits you in the office.”
Mo and the rest of the family walked off, leaving Jameson sitting there in a happy state of shock. He could marry Ariana.
“Are you coming, son?” Mo’s voice broke into his daydream of proposing to Ariana.
“No one has ever called me that.”
“Son?”
Jameson nodded as he stood up. Mo looked seriously at him before wrapping his arms around him in a hug. “From now you, you are my son. You are a member of this family. We will always be here for you.”
Shit. Jameson was worried he was going to cry for the second time in an hour. He hadn’t cried this much in his entire life.
“Come on. Let’s get the king’s blessing.”
“King. I’m going to talk to the king.”
“You’d better get used to it. You’re going to be a prince. You know, I was worried about you at first, but now I see you’re nothing like your family. You love my daughter, you’re an honorable man, and I’m proud to have you as my son.”
Jameson took a deep breath to settle his emotions. When he walked into the office, the king was on a large television. “What’s this about, Mohtadi?”
Mo filled him in on the attacks, their theories, and Deming’s insistence at being with Ariana during this visit. “Brother, we have happy news, though. This exceptional young man, Jameson Duke, the man who has saved our Ari’s life three times, has received our blessing and desires to propose to Ariana.”
Jameson stood at attention as the king stared at him.
“I know your parents. Why should I approve of this match?”
Jameson didn’t hesitate in his answer. “Because I love Ariana with all my heart and will give my life to keep her safe. I’m nothing like my parents, sir. My military record makes that clear. I’d be honored to serve you, the country of Rahmi, but most importantly, Ariana. I will love her unconditionally, support her in all her endeavors, and represent Rahmi in anyway you see fit.”
“Ahmed, I know you’re not technically family, but I trust you above all others. What say you?” the king asked.
“I would be honored to serve with Jameson, and I would trust him with Ariana’s life as well as my own,” Ahmed answered.
“Danielle, you believe Ariana will ac
cept this proposal?” the king asked.
“I believe nothing would make her happier than to be with Jameson. I see in their relationship what I’ve had with Mo and what my sons have been lucky enough to find.”
“Jameson Duke, do you promise to love, honor, and defend my niece to her dying day?” the king asked him.
“I promise,” Jameson replied instantly.
“I hereby grant you temporary Rahmi citizenship to act for and on my behalf as the head of security for Ariana Ali Rahman. I’ll send you the diplomatic papers.” The king took a deep breath and looked around the room. “We are very blessed. Our children have found love and life partners worthy of them. Jameson, I have one request.”
“Anything, sir.”
“Ariana reminds me very much of our grandmother. Mohtadi and I have often commented on it. I desire to give my wedding present early. I’m sending you her engagement ring. If it’s not too presumptuous, I’d appreciate it if you used it instead of something from the Duke family.”
Jameson bowed his head and when he looked up, the king was issuing orders for it to be done. “It would be an honor, sir. I agree, there is a Duke family ring, but I would never give it to her based on how my family has treated your family. It would be disrespectful. Although I am more than able to purchase a new one.”
“I know. I see your trust fund from your grandfather. A new setting would be nice. I look forward to the news of the engagement. Then we’ll plan the coronation to make you a prince of Rahmi after the wedding.”
“I don’t need the title, sir.”
“You may refuse it if you wish, but I believe as Prince and Princess of Rahmi, together you and Ariana will do great things. Call it a gut feeling. The choice is yours.”
“Thank you, sir. I’m honored and I will accept the title if that’s what you wish.”
“So be it. Plans will be made. A Duke no more, but a prince going forward. My felicitations.”
The screen went black and Veronica grabbed a piece of paper from the printer. “Your first orders as a diplomat of Rahmi. Keep her safe, Jameson.”
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